The Move - I Can Hear The Grass Grow (1967) - YouTube The Move - I Can Hear The Grass Grow (1967) Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Published on Mar 5, 2016 The Move were one of the leading British rock bands of the 1960s from Birmingham, England. Classic line-up: Carl Wayne (1943-2004) (vocalist, guitarist, singer), Roy Wood (bassist-vocalist), Chris 'Ace' Kefford (guitariast-vocalist), Bev Bevan (drums) and Trevor Burton (guitarist/vocalist). Originally Chris 'Ace' Kefford was the leader, but for most of their career, the Move was led by guitarist, singer and songwriter Roy Wood.

He also wrote all the group's UK singles and, from 1968 on, also sang lead vocals on many songs, although Carl Wayne was the main lead singer up to 1970. The band scored their first hit with Night Of Fear, peaking at # 2 on the UK charts February 2nd, 1967 and was held back from the top spot by The Monkees and I'm A Believer. Their second single called I Can Hear The Grass Grow peaked - as seen here - peak at # 5 on May 10th. Third single Flowers In The Rain, with sound effects of rain pouring down, became the first chart single played on BBC Radio 1 when it began broadcasting at 7am on 30 September 1967, introduced by Tony Blackburn. The Move had switched record labels from Deram to Regal Zonophone. A promotional campaign for Flowers In The Rain included a cartoon a picture postcard showing then UK Prime Minister - Harold Wilson - in bed with his secretary, Marcia Williams. The idea had ben launched bt Tony Seconda, without consulting the band. Wilson sued The Move for libel.

The group lost the court case and had to pay all costs, and all royalties earned by the song, which otherwise would have belonged to Wood as composer, were awarded to charities of Wilson's choice. Secunda was fired. In March 1968, The Move got to # 3 with Fire Brigade. It was held back from the top spot by Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich and The Legend Of Xanadu at # 2 and Cinderella Rockefella by Esther & Abi Ofarim at # 1. Roy Wood sang lead vocal, together with Carl Wayne. Same time Kefford left, reducing the band to four members. Summer 1968, their fifth single Wild Tiger Woman did not chart and sunk without a trace. But then came back with their most commercial song to date, Blackberry Way. The song topped the UK charts for one week on February 11, 1969, toppling Albatross by Fleetwood Mac. Wayne quit the group in January 1970. In came Jeff Lynne and Rick Price as new band members.

The Move had a few more hits: Curly (# 12; 1969), Brontosaurus (# 7; 1970), Tonight (# 11; 1971), Chinatown (#23; 1972) and California Man (# 7; 1972). The latter being their farewell single. Shortly after, the band crumbled and disbanded in June 1972. Lynne, Wood and Bev Bevan became the founding members of a new band: Electric Light Orchestra. Category The Move | New Music And Songs | The Move About The Move The Move were the best and most important British group of the late '60s that never made a significant dent in the American market. Through the band's several phases (which were sometimes dictated more by image than musical direction), their chief asset was guitarist and songwriter Roy Wood, who combined a knack for Beatlesque pop with a peculiarly British, and occasionally morbid, sense of humor. On their final albums (with considerable input from Jeff Lynne), the band became artier and more ambitious, hinting at the orchestral rock that Wood and Lynne would devise for the Electric Light Orchestra.

The Move, however, always placed more emphasis on the pop than the art, and never lost sight of their hardcore rock & roll roots. Formed in the mid-'60s, the Move were so named because the five musicians from the original lineups were moving from established Birmingham groups into a new band. Most of the Move, in fact, had previously recorded flop singles in average, unremarkable British Invasion styles as members of other outfits. Taken under the wing of manager Tony Secunda, the group moved to London and crafted an explosive act, heavily influenced by the Who, which found them destroying televisions on stage. The Move's early singles were also heavily influenced by mod pop in their chunky chords and oddball character sketches, although Roy Wood's songs were much poppier and bouncier than those of Pete Townshend. With Wood handling all of the writing, the group's first four singles ("Night of Fear," "I Can Hear the Grass Grow," "Flowers in the Rain," and "Fire Brigade") all made the British Top Ten in 1967-1968.

Despite the strength of the music (and a solid debut album in 1968), management and press gave more attention to their flamboyant stage antics, clothes, and outrageous publicity stunts. The most famous of these -- a publicity mailing for "Flowers in the Rain" picturing British Prime Minister Harold Wilson in an embarrassing state of undress -- backfired badly when the band lost royalties from the single in a subsequent libel suit. Bassist Ace Kefford (never an essential part of the band except for image purposes) left the Move in 1968. After a couple of less successful singles, they topped the British charts for the only time in 1969 with one of their best songs, "Blackberry Way," a kind of black-humored flipside to "Penny Lane." Guitarist Trevor Burton, who had moved to bass after Kefford left, split himself just after "Blackberry Way." Rick Price was brought in to replace Burton, and the group's second album, Shazam (1970), was one of their best, allowing them to stretch out in more progressive and experimental directions than they could within the format of hit singles.

After a misguided venture into the cabaret circuit, singer Carl Wayne left, leaving the lead vocal chores primarily in the hands of Roy Wood. The rapid succession of personnel changes would have stopped most bands in their tracks, but the Move, if anything, became a more interesting group in the early '70s. This was due primarily to the replacement of Wayne by Jeff Lynne, previously with the cutesy but interesting pop/rock group the Idle Race. Lynne would be the only member of the Move other than Wood to contribute notable songs and help shape the band's vision. On Looking On (1971) and Message from the Country (1972), Lynne's cheerier pop inclinations would effectively counterpoint Wood's darker and more ironic compositions, in the manner of great rock collaborations like Lennon-McCartney and Stills-Young. Their best work from this period, though, is actually contained on their singles, several of which ("Brontosaurus," "California Man," and "Tonight") were British hits. The Move remained unknown in the U.S. (where they had barely toured), and concentrated primarily on studio work after Lynne joined.

Their arrangements became denser and more ambitious, particularly as Wood developed proficiency on a number of common and exotic instruments. As a result of their increasing fascination with orchestral rock, Wood, Lynne, and drummer Bev Bevan discontinued the Move in the early '70s to form Electric Light Orchestra. ELO's remake of one of the Move's final singles, "Do Ya" (which had scraped the bottom of the U.S. charts in 1972), would become a hit in 1977. By that time, though, Wood was long gone from ELO -- he had left in 1972 to pursue a career as a leader of Wizzard and as a solo artist. And for all ELO's massive worldwide success, they never matched the intriguing blend of pop and experimentation that characterized the best work of the Move. ~ Richie Unterberger, Rovi Hear more of The Move | Biography & History | AllMusic google+ Artist Biography by Richie Unterberger The Move were the best and most important British group of the late '60s that never made a significant dent in the American market.

Through the band's several phases (which were sometimes dictated more by image than musical direction), their chief asset was guitarist and songwriter Roy Wood , who combined a knack for Beatlesque pop with a peculiarly British, and occasionally morbid, sense of humor. On their final albums (with considerable input from Jeff Lynne ), the band became artier and more ambitious, hinting at the orchestral rock that Wood and Lynne would devise for the Electric Light Orchestra . The Move , however, always placed more emphasis on the pop than the art, and never lost sight of their hardcore rock & roll roots. Formed in the mid-'60s, the Move were so named because the five musicians from the original lineups were moving from established Birmingham groups into a new band. Most of the Move, in fact, had previously recorded flop singles in average, unremarkable British Invasion styles as members of other outfits. Taken under the wing of manager Tony Secunda , the group moved to London and crafted an explosive act, heavily influenced by the Who , which found them destroying televisions on stage.

The Move 's early singles were also heavily influenced by mod pop in their chunky chords and oddball character sketches, although Roy Wood 's songs were much poppier and bouncier than those of Pete Townshend . With Wood handling all of the writing, the group's first four singles ("Night of Fear," "I Can Hear the Grass Grow," "Flowers in the Rain," and "Fire Brigade") all made the British Top Ten in 1967-1968. Despite the strength of the music (and a solid debut album in 1968), management and press gave more attention to their flamboyant stage antics, clothes, and outrageous publicity stunts. The most famous of these -- a publicity mailing for "Flowers in the Rain" picturing British Prime Minister Harold Wilson in an embarrassing state of undress -- backfired badly when the band lost royalties from the single in a subsequent libel suit. Bassist Ace Kefford (never an essential part of the band except for image purposes) left the Move in 1968.

After a couple of less successful singles, they topped the British charts for the only time in 1969 with one of their best songs, "Blackberry Way," a kind of black-humored flipside to "Penny Lane." Guitarist Trevor Burton , who had moved to bass after Kefford left, split himself just after "Blackberry Way." Rick Price was brought in to replace Burton , and the group's second album, Shazam (1970), was one of their best, allowing them to stretch out in more progressive and experimental directions than they could within the format of hit singles. After a misguided venture into the cabaret circuit, singer Carl Wayne left, leaving the lead vocal chores primarily in the hands of Roy Wood . The rapid succession of personnel changes would have stopped most bands in their tracks, but the Move, if anything, became a more interesting group in the early '70s. This was due primarily to the replacement of Wayne by Jeff Lynne , previously with the cutesy but interesting pop/rock group the Idle Race . Lynne would be the only member of the Move other than Wood to contribute notable songs and help shape the band's vision.

On Looking On (1971) and Message from the Country (1972), Lynne 's cheerier pop inclinations would effectively counterpoint Wood 's darker and more ironic compositions, in the manner of great rock collaborations like Lennon - McCartney and Stills - Young . Their best work from this period, though, is actually contained on their singles, several of which ("Brontosaurus," "California Man," and "Tonight") were British hits. The Move remained unknown in the U.S. (where they had barely toured), and concentrated primarily on studio work after Lynne joined. Their arrangements became denser and more ambitious, particularly as Wood developed proficiency on a number of common and exotic instruments. As a result of their increasing fascination with orchestral rock, Wood , Lynne , and drummer Bev Bevan discontinued the Move in the early '70s to form Electric Light Orchestra . ELO 's remake of one of the Move's final singles, "Do Ya" (which had scraped the bottom of the U.S. charts in 1972), would become a hit in 1977.

By that time, though, Wood was long gone from ELO -- he had left in 1972 to pursue a career as a leader of Wizzard and as a solo artist. And for all ELO 's massive worldwide success, they never matched the intriguing blend of pop and experimentation that characterized the best work of the Move. The Move on Apple Music To preview a song, mouse over the title and click Play. Open iTunes to buy and download music. Biography The Move were the best and most important British group of the late '60s that never made a significant dent in the American market. Through the band's several phases (which were sometimes dictated more by image than musical direction), their chief asset was guitarist and songwriter Roy Wood, who combined a knack for Beatlesque pop with a peculiarly British, and occasionally morbid, sense of humor. On their final albums (with considerable input from Jeff Lynne), the band became artier and more ambitious, hinting at the orchestral rock that Wood and Lynne would devise for the Electric Light Orchestra. The Move, however, always placed more emphasis on the pop than the art, and never lost sight of their hardcore rock & roll roots.

Formed in the mid-'60s, the Move were so named because the five musicians from the original lineups were moving from established Birmingham groups into a new band. Most of the Move, in fact, had previously recorded flop singles in average, unremarkable British Invasion styles as members of other outfits. Taken under the wing of manager Tony Secunda, the group moved to London and crafted an explosive act, heavily influenced by the Who, which found them destroying televisions on stage. The Move's early singles were also heavily influenced by mod pop in their chunky chords and oddball character sketches, although Roy Wood's songs were much poppier and bouncier than those of Pete Townshend. With Wood handling all of the writing, the group's first four singles ("Night of Fear," "I Can Hear the Grass Grow," "Flowers in the Rain," and "Fire Brigade") all made the British Top Ten in 1967-1968. Despite the strength of the music (and a solid debut album in 1968), management and press gave more attention to their flamboyant stage antics, clothes, and outrageous publicity stunts.

The most famous of these -- a publicity mailing for "Flowers in the Rain" picturing British Prime Minister Harold Wilson in an embarrassing state of undress -- backfired badly when the band lost royalties from the single in a subsequent libel suit. Bassist Ace Kefford (never an essential part of the band except for image purposes) left the Move in 1968. After a couple of less successful singles, they topped the British charts for the only time in 1969 with one of their best songs, "Blackberry Way," a kind of black-humored flipside to "Penny Lane." Guitarist Trevor Burton, who had moved to bass after Kefford left, split himself just after "Blackberry Way." Rick Price was brought in to replace Burton, and the group's second album, Shazam (1970), was one of their best, allowing them to stretch out in more progressive and experimental directions than they could within the format of hit singles. After a misguided venture into the cabaret circuit, singer Carl Wayne left, leaving the lead vocal chores primarily in the hands of Roy Wood.

The rapid succession of personnel changes would have stopped most bands in their tracks, but the Move, if anything, became a more interesting group in the early '70s. This was due primarily to the replacement of Wayne by Jeff Lynne, previously with the cutesy but interesting pop/rock group the Idle Race. Lynne would be the only member of the Move other than Wood to contribute notable songs and help shape the band's vision. On Looking On (1971) and Message from the Country (1972), Lynne's cheerier pop inclinations would effectively counterpoint Wood's darker and more ironic compositions, in the manner of great rock collaborations like Lennon-McCartney and Stills-Young. Their best work from this period, though, is actually contained on their singles, several of which ("Brontosaurus," "California Man," and "Tonight") were British hits. The Move remained unknown in the U.S. (where they had barely toured), and concentrated primarily on studio work after Lynne joined. Their arrangements became denser and more ambitious, particularly as Wood developed proficiency on a number of common and exotic instruments.

As a result of their increasing fascination with orchestral rock, Wood, Lynne, and drummer Bev Bevan discontinued the Move in the early '70s to form Electric Light Orchestra. ELO's remake of one of the Move's final singles, "Do Ya" (which had scraped the bottom of the U.S. charts in 1972), would become a hit in 1977. By that time, though, Wood was long gone from ELO -- he had left in 1972 to pursue a career as a leader of Wizzard and as a solo artist. And for all ELO's massive worldwide success, they never matched the intriguing blend of pop and experimentation that characterized the best work of the Move. ~ Richie Unterberger Top Albums The Move Live at Beat Beat Beat 1967 - Full - YouTube The Move Live at Beat Beat Beat 1967 - Full Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later.

Uploaded on Apr 5, 2009 Una aparicion en TV de 1967 bastante conocida pero en este caso presento la version completa con la introduccion y comentarios del locutor de la TV alemana y vista del publico. Temas / Songs: Walk Upon The Water, I Can Hear The Grass Grow, Night Of Fear An appearance in TV of 1967 quite well-known one but in this case I present/display the complete version with the introduction and commentaries of the speaker of the German TV and view of the audience Category The Collection - The Move | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic The Collection google+ AllMusic Review by Wilson Neate Since the late '80s, there's been a steady stream of Move compilations, reissues, and repackagings in response to renewed interest in the band. Like a number of those releases, The Collection focuses on the Move 's 1967-1970 period, featuring the group's A-sides plus a few other album tracks.

Listening to the singalong mod pop of "Flowers in the Rain" and the more riff-driven "I Can Hear the Grass Grow," you can hear the debt owed by subsequent generations of power pop acts, from Cheap Trick to the Posies to the Shazam . Ironically, however, while their bouncy, harmony-rich rock later found particular favor in the U.S., during the Move 's lifetime their records went largely unnoticed stateside. The Move's early singles sound very much of their time; they stand as period pieces, albeit brilliant ones that display the ways in which Roy Wood 's songwriting abilities set him apart from many of his contemporaries. Indeed, tracks like "Cherry Blossom Clinic Revisited," "Night of Fear," and "Blackberry Way" (the anti-"Penny Lane") attest to Wood 's idiosyncratic, classically nuanced musical sensibility and his occasionally noir-ish lyrical vision.

Although The Collection showcases the Birmingham band's more memorable, poppier moments, it also samples the Move 's harder-edged tendencies: the proto-glam flamboyance of "Wild Tiger Woman," the '50s rock & roll licks of "Fire Brigade," and the chugging "Brontosaurus," which had much in common with the nascent heavy metal sounds emanating from Britain's industrial heartland at the time. The band's rock prowess can be best heard on four live songs culled from the 1968 Something Else EP. This is a solid compilation that traces the Move 's changing sound, from tracks encapsulating their early psychedelic pop orientation to later numbers like "When Alice Comes Back to the Farm" that give a stronger indication of the direction Wood and Jeff Lynne would take with ELO .

Track Listing The Greatest Hits 1967 (UK) Donovan - There Is A Mountain - 11-67 Val Doonican - Memories Are Made Of This - 03-67 Val Doonican - If The Whole World Stopped Loving - 11-67 The Dubliners - Seven Drunken Nights - 05-67 The Dubliners - Black Velvet Band - 10-67 Simon Dupree & The Big Sound - Kites - 12-67 Georgie Fame - Sittin' In The Park - 01-67 Georgie Fame - Because I Love You - 04-67 The Flowerpot Men - Let's Go To San Francisco - 09-67 Wayne Fontana - Pamela Pamela - 01-67 The Foundations - Baby, Now That I Found You - 10-67 The Four Tops - Standing In The Shadows Of Love - 01-67 The Four Tops - Bernadette - 04-67 The Four Tops - Seven Rooms Of Gloom - 07-67 The Four Tops - Walk Away Renee - 12-67 Aretha Franklin - Respect

 - 07-67 Bobby Gentry - Ode To Billie Joe - 10-67 Anita Harris - Just Loving You - 08-67 The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Hey Joe - 01-67 The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Purple Haze - 04-67 The Jimi Hendrix Experience - The Wind Cries Mary - 05-67 The Herd - From The Underworld - 10-67 Herman's Hermits - There's A Kind Of Hush - 03-67 Vince Hill - Edelweiss - 03-67 Vince Hill - Roses Of Picardy - 06-67 The Hollies - On A Carousel - 03-67 The Hollies - Carrie-Anne - 06-67 Engelbert Humperdinck - Release Me - 02-67 Engelbert Humperdinck - There Goes My Everything - 06-67 Engelbert Humperdinck - The Last Waltz - 09-67 The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Hey Joe - 01-67 The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Purple H

aze - 04-67 The Jimi Hendrix Experience - The Wind Cries Mary - 05-67 The Johnny Mann Singers - Up Up And Away - 08-67 Paul Jones - I've Been A Bad Bad Boy - 02-67 Tom Jones - Detroit City - 03-67 Tom Jones - Funny Familiar Forgotten Feeling - 05-67 Tom Jones - I'll Never Fall In Love Again - 08-67 Tom Jones - I'm Comin' Home - 12-67 The Kinks - Waterloo Sunset - 05-67 The Kinks - Autumn Almanac - 11-67 Long John Baldry - Let The Heartaches Begin - 11-67 Lulu - The Boat That I Row - 05-67 Lulu - Let's Pretend - 08-67 The Mamas & The Papas - Dedicated To The One I Love - 05-67 The Mamas & The Papas - Creeque Alley - 08-67 Manfred Mann - Ha Ha Said The Clown - 04-67 Scott McKenzie - San Francisco (

Be Sure To Wear Some Flowers In Your Hair) - 07-67 The Monkees - I'm A Believer - 01-67 The Monkees - A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You - 04-67 The Monkees - Alternate Title - 07-67 The Monkees - Pleasant Valley Sunday - 08-67 The Monkees - Daydream Believer - 12-67 The Move - Night Of Fear - 01-67 The Move - I Can Hear The Grass Grow - 04-67 The Move - Flowers In The Rain - 09-67 The New Vaudeville Band - Peek-A-Boo - 02-67 The New Vaudeville Band - Finchley Central - 06-67 Des O'Connor - Careless Hands - 12-67 Pink Floyd - See Emily Play - 07-67 Gene Pitney - Something's Gotten Hold Of My Heart - 12-67 The Alan Price Set - Simon Smith & His Amazing Dancing Bear - 03-67 The Alan Price Set - The House That Jack Built - 08-67

 Procol Harum - A Whiter Shade Of Pale - 06-67 Procol Harum - Homburg - 10-67 Jim Reeves - I Won't Come In While He's There - 02-67 Cliff Richard - In The Country - 01-67 Cliff Richard - It's All Over - 04-67 Cliff Richard - The Day I Met Marie - 09-67 Cliff Richard - All My Love - 12-67 The Rolling Stones - Let's Spend The Night Together / Ruby Tuesday - 02-67 The Rolling Stones - We Love You / Dandelion - 09-67 Diana Ross & The Supremes - Reflections - 09-67 The Royal Guardsmen - Snoopy Vs The Red Baron - 02-67 Scaffold - Thank U Very Much - 12-67 Harry Secombe - This Is My Song - 02-67 The Seekers - Georgy Girl - 03-67 The Seekers - When Will The Good Apples Fall - 10-67 Sandie Shaw - Puppet On A String - 04-67

 Nancy Sinatra - Sugar Town - 02-67 Nancy Sinatra & Lee Hazlewood - Jackson / You Only Live Twice - 07-67 Nancy & Frank Sinatra - Somethin' Stupid - 04-67 The Small Faces - Here Come The Nice - 07-67 The Small Faces - Itchycoo Park - 09-67 The Spencer Davis Group - I'm A Man - 02-67 Cat Stevens - Matthew And Son - 01-67 Cat Stevens - I'm Gonna Get Me A Gun - 04-67 The Supremes - The Happening - 06-67 Felice Taylor - I Feel Love Comin' On - 11-1967 Topol - If I Were A Rich Man - 07-67 Traffic - Paper Sun - 06-67 Traffic - Hole In My Shoe - 09-67 Traffic - Here We Go Round The Mulberry Bush - 12-67 The Tremeloes - Here Comes My Baby - 02-67 The Tremeloes - Silence Is Golden - 05-67 The Tremeloes

 - Even The Bad Times Are Good - 08-67 The Troggs - Any Way That You Want Me - 01-67 The Troggs - Give It To Me - 03-67 The Troggs - Love Is All Around - 11-67 The Turtles - Happy Together - 04-67 The Turtles - She'd Rather Be With Me - 07-67 Frankien Vaughan - There Must Be A Way - 09-67 Keith West - Excerpt From 'A Teenage Opera' - 09-67 Whistling Jack Smith - I Was Kaiser Bill's Batman - 03-67 The Who - Happy Jack - 01-67 The Who - Pictures Of Lily - 05-67 The Who - I Can See For Miles - 11-67 Stevie Wonder - I Was Made To Love Her - 08-67 The Young Rascals - Groovin' - 06-67 The Move - Biography | Billboard The Move Trevor Burton Bev Bevan Jeff Lynne Rick Price Roy Wood Carl Wayne Ace Kefford The Move were the best and most

 important British group of the late '60s that never made a significant dent in the American market.

Through the band's several phases (which were sometimes dictated more by image than musical direction), their chief asset was guitarist and songwriter Roy Wood, who combined a knack for Beatlesque pop with a peculiarly British, and occasionally morbid, sense of humor. On their final albums (with considerable input from Jeff Lynne), the band became artier and more ambitious, hinting at the orchestral rock that Wood and Lynne would devise for the Electric Light Orchestra. The Move, however, always placed more emphasis on the pop than the art, and never lost sight of their hardcore rock & roll roots. Formed in the mid-'60s, the Move were so named because the five musicians from the original lineups were moving from established Birmingham groups into a new band. Most of the Move, in fact, had previously recorded flop singles in average, unremarkable British Invasion styles as members of other outfits. Taken under the wing of manager Tony Secunda, the group moved to London and crafted an explosive act, heavily influenced by the Who, which found them destroying televisions on stage.

The Move's early singles were also heavily influenced by mod pop in their chunky chords and oddball character sketches, although Roy Wood's songs were much poppier and bouncier than those of Pete Townshend. With Wood handling all of the writing, the group's first four singles ("Night of Fear," "I Can Hear the Grass Grow," "Flowers in the Rain," and "Fire Brigade") all made the British Top Ten in 1967-1968. Despite the strength of the music (and a solid debut album in 1968), management and press gave more attention to their flamboyant stage antics, clothes, and outrageous publicity stunts. The most famous of these -- a publicity mailing for "Flowers in the Rain" picturing British Prime Minister Harold Wilson in an embarrassing state of undress -- backfired badly when the band lost royalties from the single in a subsequent libel suit. Bassist Ace Kefford (never an essential part of the band except for image purposes) left the Move in 1968.

After a couple of less successful singles, they topped the British charts for the only time in 1969 with one of their best songs, "Blackberry Way," a kind of black-humored flipside to "Penny Lane." Guitarist Trevor Burton, who had moved to bass after Kefford left, split himself just after "Blackberry Way." Rick Price was brought in to replace Burton, and the group's second album, Shazam (1970), was one of their best, allowing them to stretch out in more progressive and experimental directions than they could within the format of hit singles. After a misguided venture into the cabaret circuit, singer Carl Wayne left, leaving the lead vocal chores primarily in the hands of Roy Wood. The rapid succession of personnel changes would have stopped most bands in their tracks, but the Move, if anything, became a more interesting group in the early '70s. This was due primarily to the replacement of Wayne by Jeff Lynne, previously with the cutesy but interesting pop/rock group the Idle Race. Lynne would be the only member of the Move other than Wood to contribute notable songs and help shape the band's vision.

On Looking On (1971) and Message from the Country (1972), Lynne's cheerier pop inclinations would effectively counterpoint Wood's darker and more ironic compositions, in the manner of great rock collaborations like Lennon-McCartney and Stills-Young. Their best work from this period, though, is actually contained on their singles, several of which ("Brontosaurus," "California Man," and "Tonight") were British hits. The Move remained unknown in the U.S. (where they had barely toured), and concentrated primarily on studio work after Lynne joined. Their arrangements became denser and more ambitious, particularly as Wood developed proficiency on a number of common and exotic instruments. As a result of their increasing fascination with orchestral rock, Wood, Lynne, and drummer Bev Bevan discontinued the Move in the early '70s to form Electric Light Orchestra. ELO's remake of one of the Move's final singles, "Do Ya" (which had scraped the bottom of the U.S. charts in 1972), would become a hit in 1977.

By that time, though, Wood was long gone from ELO -- he had left in 1972 to pursue a career as a leader of Wizzard and as a solo artist. And for all ELO's massive worldwide success, they never matched the intriguing blend of pop and experimentation that characterized the best work of the Move. ~ Richie Unterberger, Rovi Related Artists The Move — Listen for free on Spotify The Move Play on Spotify The Move were the best and most important British group of the late '60s that never made a significant dent in the American market. Through the band's several phases (which were sometimes dictated more by image than musical direction), their chief asset was guitarist and songwriter Roy Wood , who combined a knack for Beatlesque pop with a peculiarly British, and occasionally morbid, sense of humor. On their final albums (with considerable input from Jeff Lynne ), the band became artier and more ambitious, hinting at the orchestral rock that Wood and Lynne would devise for the Electric Light Orchestra . The Move, however, always placed more emphasis on the pop than the art, and never lost sight of their hardcore rock & roll roots.

Formed in the mid-'60s, the Move were so named because the five musicians from the original lineups were moving from established Birmingham groups into a new band. Most of the Move, in fact, had previously recorded flop singles in average, unremarkable British Invasion styles as members of other outfits. Taken under the wing of manager Tony Secunda, the group moved to London and crafted an explosive act, heavily influenced by the Who , which found them destroying televisions on stage. The Move's early singles were also heavily influenced by mod pop in their chunky chords and oddball character sketches, although Roy Wood 's songs were much poppier and bouncier than those of Pete Townshend . With Wood handling all of the writing, the group's first four singles ("Night of Fear," "I Can Hear the Grass Grow," "Flowers in the Rain," and "Fire Brigade") all made the British Top Ten in 1967-1968. Despite the strength of the music (and a solid debut album in 1968), management and press gave more attention to their flamboyant stage antics, clothes, and outrageous publicity stunts.

The most famous of these -- a publicity mailing for "Flowers in the Rain" picturing British Prime Minister Harold Wilson in an embarrassing state of undress -- backfired badly when the band lost royalties from the single in a subsequent libel suit. Bassist Ace Kefford (never an essential part of the band except for image purposes) left the Move in 1968. After a couple of less successful singles, they topped the British charts for the only time in 1969 with one of their best songs, "Blackberry Way," a kind of black-humored flipside to "Penny Lane." Guitarist Trevor Burton, who had moved to bass after Kefford left, split himself just after "Blackberry Way." Rick Price was brought in to replace Burton, and the group's second album, Shazam (1970), was one of their best, allowing them to stretch out in more progressive and experimental directions than they could within the format of hit singles. After a misguided venture into the cabaret circuit, singer Carl Wayne left, leaving the lead vocal chores primarily in the hands of Roy Wood .

The rapid succession of personnel changes would have stopped most bands in their tracks, but the Move, if anything, became a more interesting group in the early '70s. This was due primarily to the replacement of Wayne by Jeff Lynne , previously with the cutesy but interesting pop/rock group the Idle Race . Lynne would be the only member of the Move other than Wood to contribute notable songs and help shape the band's vision. On Looking On (1971) and Message from the Country (1972), Lynne 's cheerier pop inclinations would effectively counterpoint Wood 's darker and more ironic compositions, in the manner of great rock collaborations like Lennon - McCartney and Stills - Young . Their best work from this period, though, is actually contained on their singles, several of which ("Brontosaurus," "California Man," and "Tonight") were British hits. The Move remained unknown in the U.S. (where they had barely toured), and concentrated primarily on studio work after Lynne joined. Their arrangements became denser and more ambitious, particularly as Wood developed proficiency on a number of common and exotic instruments.

As a result of their increasing fascination with orchestral rock, Wood , Lynne , and drummer Bev Bevan discontinued the Move in the early '70s to form Electric Light Orchestra . ELO 's remake of one of the Move's final singles, "Do Ya" (which had scraped the bottom of the U.S. charts in 1972), would become a hit in 1977. By that time, though, Wood was long gone from ELO -- he had left in 1972 to pursue a career as a leader of Wizzard and as a solo artist. And for all ELO 's massive worldwide success, they never matched the intriguing blend of pop and experimentation that characterized the best work of the Move. ~ Richie Unterberger, Rovi Read More Show less

Question: Which group had 1967 hits with 'Night Of Fear' and 'I Can HearThe Grass Grow'?
Answer: THE MOVE